95 Still MIssing, AT&T in Bed With NSA
Sunday, August 16, 2015
Vol. 4, No. 228
Tianjin: Ninety-five people, most of them firefighters, are still missing after Wednesday’s massive explosions in a hazardous-chemical warehouse. At least 112 people have already been confirmed dead.
Authorities have tried to control press coverage and Internet discussion of the disaster. At least 50 websites have been shut down, accused of spreading panic by distributing unverified information.
Call Home: The NY Times and Pro Publica report based upon documents provided by NSA leaker Edward Snowden that AT&T cooperated for many years with the NSA to help the agency spy on Internet traffic. AT&T is identified in the leaked documents by the code name “Fairview.” Pro Publica writes, “Newly disclosed NSA documents show that the relationship with AT&T has been considered unique and especially productive. One document described it as ‘highly collaborative,’ while another lauded the company’s ‘extreme willingness to help.'”
World: An Indonesian airliner carrying 54 people is missing today in mountainous country after going off the radar during a short flight. There were strong winds, heavy rain, and fog when the propeller-driven plane went off the radar nine minutes before landing.
The Obit Page: Julian Bond, the civil rights leader who started as a student activist, became the chairman of the NAACP, and was a founder of the Southern Poverty Law Center, died last night in Florida after a brief illness. He was 75.
For a time on the 1960s and 70s Bond was one of the faces of the civil rights movement. He was handsome, cool, and very smart. He started as a member of the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee, which staged protests against segregation, and went on the serve 20 years in the Georgia legislature.
Make America Great: Speaking at the Iowa State Fair yesterday Donald Trump told reporters that voters don’t care much about his position on issues and what he plans to do if he’s elected president. He hasn’t issued many positions. “The press is more eager to see it than the voters,” he said. “The voters like me, they understand me, they know I’m going to do the job.”
Trump said you can lay out a 14-point plan for something and it goes away the moment you enter negotiations. And he said dealing with New York City zoning issues may be tougher than anything he would be called upon to do as president.
Trump arrived at the fair in his helicopter painted prominently with the name “Trump,” and offered rides to children. It’s the new way to kiss babies.
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